Chapter 293 The Person Inside the Coffin
The others looked at Little Yuan’er curiously. Duanmu Sheng asked, “Do you know who did this, little junior sister?”
Little Yuan’er snorted and said, “It’s probably the strange man who stays in a coffin. I think he’s called Gong Yuandu… He’s a weirdo. The world is huge, and yet, he chooses to stay in a coffin. That’s scary if you ask me.”
Hua Wudao was speechless. It was normal for the younger generation to not know Gong Yuandu. However, for an old man like him, Gong Yuandao’s name resounded loudly like a thunderclap. He frowned. “Gong Yuandu?”
“You know him, Elder Hua?”
“… I’ve heard of him.”
Little Yuan’er said, “After master killed Kong Yuan with a palm strike, Gong Yuandu came out… He even wanted to challenge master to a battle. However, that man’s especially cowardly. He was so intimidated by master’s might that he dared not come out from his coffin.”
“Wait.” Hua Wudao raised a hand. “The pavilion master killed Kong Yuan with a palm strike?”
“Yeah… Why?”
Hua Wudao was stunned. Gong Yuandu was not the only person that he knew. He knew Kong Yuan as well. In fact, he knew Kong Yuan better than Gong Yuandu. Kong Yuan had been a Seven-leaf elite since a long time ago. After cultivating in seclusion, it was rumored that Kong Yuan had a breakthrough. Otherwise, the monk, Kong Xuan, would not be so bold as to lead the monks and commit evil deeds on Runan’s holy altar. However, the pavilion master had killed Kong Yuan, the elite zen cultivator, with just a palm strike? He had difficulties believing this. However, there was no reason for Little Yuan’er to lie. At most, she might be exaggerating or she might have mistaken someone else for Kong Yuan. However, it was pointless to think about these matters at the moment. When the pavilion master came out from his cultivation, he would have his answer. He finally asked, “Nothing… You mentioned Gong Yuandu earlier. Is he in the Mausoleum of Swords?”
“Yes.” “Is Gong Yuandu powerful?” Duanmu Sheng asked.
“That’s a long story…” Hua Wudao began to recount what he knew. “You might not believe this, but Gong Yuandu and the pavilion master were cultivators of the same era… To be more precise, Gong Yuandu is younger than him for about a century. He hails from the northern capital. From the records of the books in the northern capital, he started cultivating when he was five years old… He attained the Divine Court realm when he was barely 15 and was in the Nascent Divinity Tribulation realm when he was 20. After that, he challenged elites from all over the world for several centuries. Nobody knows how many leaves he had. He kept this up until he met the pavilion master…” He paused before he continued to say, “Come to think of it, the pavilion master seems to be the bane of genius cultivators…” He cleared his throat awkwardly. “Back then, I also lost to the pavilion master due to my own carelessness.”
The others rolled their eyes.
‘He’s trying to compliment himself.’
‘Doesn’t his old face feel hot?’
“However, compared to Gong Yuandu, I’m truly inferior… Gong Yuandu is skilled in Daoist seals and zen. He’s especially skilled with the sword. Since Gong Yuandu lost to the pavilion master, he would challenge the pavilion master every year. He lost every match they ever had…”
Little Yuan’er suddenly interrupted and said, “Did he form a knot in his heart?”
The others turned to look at Little Yuan’er.
Duanmu Sheng scratched his head and added, “Yes, I was wondering about that as well…” Hua Wudao coughed and said, “The later stages of cultivation is no longer just a question of determination and insight. One’s frame of mind is also important… Gong Yuandu is a genius cultivator, after all. His heart is made of stronger stuff compared to other cultivators. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to defeat the other elites.”
“What happened after that?” Little Yuan’er asked.
“After that… the pavilion master recruited disciples and was once at the peak of his cultivation. He was peerless, and Gong Yuandu decided to give up on challenging him. His sole redeeming grace was that he was younger than the pavilion master. Back then, the cultivation world thought that Gong Yuandu was probably waiting for the pavilion master to grow old, just like everyone else… Unfortunately, after his disappearance, Gong Yuandu never showed his face again.”
At this moment, everyone fell silent.
Duanmu Sheng finally said in confusion, “Come to think of it, I do have some recollection of this. When I joined the pavilion, I remember Eldest Senior Brother talking about it… However, with master’s temper back then, Gong Yuandu couldn’t have escaped unharmed every time. How did he do it?”.
“I don’t know about that… I’m only telling you what I’ve been told myself.” Hua Wudao shook his head.
Hua Yuexing asked, perplexed, “Gong Yuandu is an elite swordsman. It’s understandable for him to go to the Mausoleum of Swords to get insight. However, why is he hiding in a coffin?”
Hua Wudao shook his head again. “Like many cultivators at the peak, he’s seeking for eternal life… In the whole wide world, there’s always a handful who’s greedy enough to think of breaking the laws of the heavens. The cultivation world has a change of generations every millennium… There are more cultivators wanting to live forever than I can count… However, none of them have ever succeeded.” “Is the great limit of the cultivation world unbreakable, then?” Little Yuan’er asked.
“Of course…” Hua Wudao took a deep breath. “This truth has been confirmed by countless others… I heard that the person with the longest lifespan managed to live to 1,150 years old.”
“Does that count as breaking the 1,000-year limit?”
“No. The 1,000-year limit is only a saying… Cultivators can prolong their lives by improving their cultivation bases. At around 900 years, our cultivation base would deteriorate, and we’d no longer be able to resist wasting away. For example, mortals living for 100 years can be considered as living a long life… However, even in the whole of Great Yan, there are countless mortals, and yet, only a few manage to live to 100,” Hua Wudao replied.
The others nodded upon hearing Hua Wudao’s words.
Duanmu Sheng cupped his fists at Hua Wudao. “I’ve been enlightened… I always learn new things when I listen to you, Elder Hua.”
After all, their master had never taught them these things. Ever since they joined the pavilion, they spent their days cultivating or getting beaten up. Little Yuan’er was the same.
Hua Wudao sighed inwardly. He understood Duanmu Sheng’s struggles.
In truth, there were sects like this among the Noble Path as well. The only thing was that none of them were as outstanding as the Evil Sky Pavilion.
“Gong Yuandu said that he would come in a month so why did he come now? What kind of genius is he? He even went back on his words!” Little Yuan’er said indignantly. “I don’t think it’s him.” Hua Wudao shook his head. “Gong Yuandu holds himself in high regard. He’s also a proud man whose pride is deeply etched in his bones. A vulgar task such as tailing you to the mountain and riding the Evil Sky Pavilion of the mice isn’t something he would do. Moreover, Gong Yuandu isn’t exactly a nice person.”
“Oh.” Little Yuan’er mumbled. “I didn’t actually mean it.”
“…” Hua Wudao felt speechless. ‘Little ancestor, because of your offhand remark, I had to spend a long time explaining things.’ Duanmu Sheng frowned and said, “If Gong Yuandu is that powerful, and he’s coming to the Evil Sky Pavilion in a month… When that time comes…”
“There’s no need to worry,” Hua Wudao said, “I’ve observed the pavilion master’s condition before this. Although he tried to suppress his aura as best he could and maintained it at the Divine Court realm, from his glabella, I can see he’s still very spirited. If Gong Yuandu comes, he’ll surely lose.” “Spirited?”
“I’m just reading his face. The Yun Sect does have Daoist roots, and I learned a thing or two about it when I was a young cultivator,” Hua Wudao boldly said. However, inwardly, he hoped they would not question him further.
Little Yuan’er instantly leaped up, invigorated, as she asked, “Hm? Elder Hua, take a look at my face! What’s my future like then?”
